Today we received sad news that Lemmy Kilmister had passed away. According to sources, Lemmy was found to have an “extremely” aggressive cancer found just 2 days ago (December 26th). This information was posted on Motorhead’s Facebook page. Read more

There is a lot of fuss made in the guitar community about so-called ‘vintage’ guitars, ‘vintage’ being another word for ‘old’. There is a certain part of our world that longs to play a 30-, 40-, or even 50-year-old guitar or bass for a variety of reasons. To be honest, there is something to this argument when it is applied to instruments that truly are products of what many to be the ‘golden era’ of guitar production in the USA which, if we combine acoustic and electric guitars, would be roughly from the 1920’s to about 1970.Read more

There are moments in every B.B. King solo when the man hits a certain combination of notes, or bends the string in a way so uniquely his own, it’s almost as if he just leaned over and whispered his life’s secrets in your ear. B.B. King is that rare animal—a distinctive blues stylist. So unique is his talent that he’s taken possession of an entire position on the guitar neck, on that might as well be known as “the B spot.” Read more

The black Strat as it looked in 1976 following Gilmour's substitution of the black DiMarzio FS-1 pickup. He added the neck with rosewood fretboard in June 1972, replacing the original maple neck.

The history of Pink Floyd has been told many times but never in the way that Phil Taylor tells it. His book, Pink Floyd, The Black Strat, A History of David Gilmour’s Black Fender Stratocaster, is a real-life rock and roll story filled with color and excitement, told through the vicissitudes and fortunes of a single musical instrument. The instrument in this instance is a black Fender Stratocaster belonging to David Gilmour, and the story is one of the greatest in the annals of classic rock Read more

It was a dark and rainy night. The courthouse clock struck midnight; a stray dog howled. It was all too beautiful when the staff of Gear Vault convened for their semi-annual secret meeting with the confines of the beloved cinder block chamber they call their “office.” Their agenda? Read more

The Greatest Guitar Hero, Jimi Hendrix still remains one of the most influential forces in rock music. Pulling unprecedented sounds out of his Fender Strat, Hendrix challenged musicians and guitarists to explore a wild new world of tones and textures, dazzling and confounding guitar greats like Jeff Beck, Pete Townshend and Eric Clapton, who still speak of Hendrix with a hushed reverence. Other players before him might have experimented with feedback and excessive distortion, Hendrix turned those practices into an art fashion. He was the first player to use the whammy bar as an instrument unto itself, making his Stratocaster talk, scream and howl. Read more

Ah, the classic Gibson vs Fender debate. This dispute has become so famous and so controversial that nearly all guitarists are forced to segregate themselves and declare their allegiances. But why form such specific, exclusive factions, driving a wedge between the guitar playing community? For good reason, as it turns out the two companies build different guitars for different purposes, making it perfectly reasonable that some players only pick a Fender while others are firm Gibson men (and women). But which is best for the player who has yet to pledge themselves to one brand? Read on and find out. Read more

Marshall is one of the most reputed guitar amplifier manufacturers in the world. The history of Marshall Amplifiers is a really interesting one and the company with its excellent products has indeed rewritten the way a genre of music is heard! Many guitarists to date prefer the signature Marshall “crunch sound” which only Marshal amps can deliver. The company throughout its history has indeed developed many models which have been extremely well received by both veteran and entry level players and it continues to do so till date. Read more